Late at night, the sound of cricket chirps filled my quiet room.

"Haah..."

Leaving all the noise and chaos behind, I felt a sense of calm wash over me.

It seemed like everything had ended well.

Although I wasn't sure about the aftermath, I believed Rie and Astina would handle it.

I lowered Luna, who I had been carrying, onto my bed.

"Uh..."

Luna groaned and began to regain consciousness.

"Luna, are you alright?"

I sat her down on my bed, holding her head.

"Where... is this?"

Luna looked around, frowning.

"It's my room."

"You...?"

Luna raised her head to look at me standing in front of her.

"Ru... Rudy? How did you...? No, more importantly, ah...!"

As if realizing something, Luna opened her eyes wide and scanned the room.

"Huh? I was in the library, right? I was touching a book... Ah! The book? Was there a grimoire nearby where I was? It has a high-quality leather cover...!"

"Here it is."

I handed over Levian's grimoire, which I had placed beside me.

Seeing her search for the book as soon as she regained consciousness, I could tell how much Luna cherished it.

"Th-thank goodness... But, what happened? I remember touching this grimoire and then losing consciousness."

I explained the situation to the confused Luna.

I told her about Luna's mana explosion and the burning library, but I didn't go into too much detail.

If I went too deep, I would have to mention what I knew about the grimoire.

Luna would be even more confused if she knew I had information I wasn't supposed to know...

"So that's what happened... I..."

After hearing the whole story, Luna bowed her head.

I could feel various emotions from her expression, like remorse and sadness.

I didn't say anything else.

The sound of cricket chirps filled the silence.

In the midst of the quiet, Luna spoke up.

"You know, Rudy, I was a real troublemaker when I was young."

Luna, who said that, had a bitter expression on her face.

"You might not know this since you lived in the capital, but it's difficult to find friends when you live on the outskirts of the empire. Especially friends of similar status."

Luna continued.

"Because of that, I would cause mischief everywhere out of boredom. I would play pranks on the villagers' crops or ride on the animals the villagers raised..."

Luna reminisced and smiled faintly.

"One day, while I was playing like that, a wizard visited our territory."

"A wizard..."

The royal wizard, Levian, must have been the one.

"It was an old man with an enormous beard who said he would rest in our territory for a while. So, my father... no, my dad offered him a nice place to stay."

"But, that old man said there was no need for that. He would just find a place to rest on his own and asked us not to worry about him."

"So, what happened?"

As I asked, Luna replied with a smile.

"That wizard built a small hut on the outskirts of our territory and stayed there. It was a really shabby hut..."

Luna looked up at the ceiling as if reminiscing.

"And that wizard helped the people in our territory every day. He took care of the residents, made the territory prosperous, and drove away monsters."

"He sounds like a good person."

"Right? I was curious about that wizard, so I visited him every day. But every day, he drove me away."

"Being young and mischievous, I became even more determined to visit him. Of course, I played pranks on that hut every day... like I said before, I was a troublemaker."

Luna scratched her head, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"By visiting him every day, I found something the wizard treasured. It was a magic tome that looked valuable at first glance. The wizard held it in his hand even while sleeping and doing other things."

"So, I decided to play a prank with that magic tome. I wanted to fool the wizard who drove me away every day. I planned to steal the tome and make a fool of him."

"Did you succeed?"

"No, it was too difficult to steal that magic tome. It was impossible for an ordinary child like me to steal something from a wizard. Hehe..."

She continued with a laugh.

"One day, when I was trying to steal the magic tome, I encountered a monster on my way to the hut. The hut was on the outskirts, so the monster had come there."

"I cried and ran away. However, being a young child, I couldn't escape from the monster. I was caught and faced a life-threatening situation. That's when the wizard appeared."

Luna looked down with a faint smile.

"The wizard instantly eliminated the monster, and I was saved. After that, my father didn't allow me to leave my room."

"But one day, I got a chance to escape from my room. I immediately left my room and headed for the hut where the wizard was."

"And then?"

"Um... when I got to the hut, the wizard was lying down in one corner, sleeping. As a normal child, I should have thanked him, but I didn't show my gratitude and was mischievous instead. You know, young kids often play pranks as a sign of affection."

"I looked around and found the magic tome near the wizard. So, I decided to steal it. I took the magic tome and returned to my room. And then I waited for the wizard to come to our mansion."

Luna made a pained expression as she spoke.

Such an agonizing look on her face.

"But even after a day or two had passed, he didn't come to the mansion. I felt something was off because the townspeople usually came to see me the day after I caused trouble."

"I was being spiteful and decided not to give him the magic book until he came looking for me. Then one day, there was a commotion in our territory."

With a choked-up voice, Luna continued.

"The wizard... The old man was found dead in his house."

Luna let out an awkward laugh. Her expression looked as if she was about to cry at any moment.

"I later found out that he had passed away due to old age... He was so old... That powerful wizard who could defeat even the strongest monsters..."

Luna repeated herself, seemingly swallowing her tears.

"I never got the chance to thank the old man even once. Then my father handed me a letter. He said it was a letter the old man had left for me. I immediately opened it."

"In the letter, there was a lot of content. Among them was a message saying that I had talent in magic and that I should do whatever it takes to get into Liberion Academy..."

"And there was this sentence..."

Taking a deep breath, Luna continued.

"He said he was never bored, thanks to me. That's why he wanted to give me this magic book as a gift."

Luna showed me the magic book she was holding. Tears welled up in her eyes.

"How foolish, right? I just caused trouble and was a nuisance, but he wanted to give me this magic book. He said I had talent in magic... What does he know about me..."

Luna bit her lower lip.

"But he believed in me so much, and all I do is cause accidents... The real fool is me."

I looked at Luna. This was a story I had never heard before.

In the game, the story usually revolved around Evan.

Evan would console Luna by sharing his own story after Luna had burned the library.

So, I had no idea Luna had such a story.

Many thoughts crossed my mind.

Should I comfort Luna?

Should I empathize with her and pat her back?

I made up my mind and opened my mouth.

"Luna."

As I called her, Luna lifted her head and looked at me.

However, I spat out cold words at her.

"I won't empathize with your situation, nor will I comfort you."

"?"

At my words, Luna raised her head.

"Your parents might understand your situation and try to help you in any way they can, but I won't."

I thought that harsh words were necessary.

I wouldn't comfort her for her failure.

If a person keeps receiving comfort for their failures, they'll get used to failing.

"Right now, my life is hard and burdensome. I'm too busy thinking about my future to have the leisure to worry about you."

Luna lowered her head.

"I'm sorry... I-"

"But," I interrupted Luna's words.

"Even if I can't empathize with your hardships, I can still be happy with your joy."

Luna looked at me with a puzzled expression.

"When you succeed, when you achieve something, when you accomplish something. At that moment, I can truly be happy with you. I can smile and sincerely congratulate you."

I said those words with a faint smile. I wanted to let her know how much happiness awaited her when she succeeded, even if I couldn't comfort her in her failures.

"Overcome it. You can overcome it. These failures and difficulties are for you to bear and stand up from."

People often say that the person beside you during tough times is a true friend.

But I don't think so.

My life is also harsh and painful, how could I bear someone else's pain as well?

I believe a true friend is someone who doesn't leave you during difficult times.

There's no need to stay by their side all the time. You don't need to share their pain. After all, everyone has their own life.

That's why a true friend is someone who waits for you from afar until you succeed.

Someone who waits until you're genuinely happy. Someone who can truly rejoice with you.

That person is a true friend.

Tears streamed down Luna's face. However, she was smiling. She smiled brightly.

"If this isn't consolation, then what is... You're such a fool."

Luna said that and stood up from her seat.

"You're a fool too... Can I ask a favor from such a fool?"

Luna shoved a magic book at me.

"?"

"Take this. Keep it with you. It's my most precious possession, so handle it with care."

"Why are you giving this to me?"

"I think it's something I can't handle right now. Hold onto it, and when you think I'm ready, give it back to me."

Luna grinned.

"Please watch me succeed once. As my sponsor, you can at least have that much patience, right?"

I accepted the magic book.

"I'm looking forward to it."

I smiled at Luna as I took the magic book. Luna smiled back at me, but suddenly furrowed her brow and rubbed her forehead.

"Why does my forehead hurt so much?"

Ah.

"Could it be a side effect of the mana explosion?"

"Is that it?"

I couldn't bring myself to tell her that I had punched her in the head in this kind of atmosphere.